I dont know about old / new format but I am a recent re-convert back into the chess world. I stopped playing after highschool and was just recently reminded how much I love the game.

As for the site, I came from checccube... wont be heading back anytime soon. It's "slick", for sure, but I like it here better for the more 'advanced' options. Chess mentor, tournaments, correspondance chess ('online') and the videos aren't "rented". Granted you need to be diamond to get them which I wasn't "thrilled' with but I sucked it up and frankly dont regret it.

Yeah that was pretty lewd ...I don't think I could be associated with this thread anymore ,that Panda guy is like 14 years old and you've probably ruined his innocence now...that's the Internet for ya ,kids should be outside ,playing catch,now the damage is done!

lol, what about yours? can't get away with telling jokes about mantlepieces, surely?

Come on man, it doesn't take much getting used to. When it first changed people were inevitably up in arms about it, but after a week I think most people started to realise that it's as easy as the old one. Who woulda predicted that. It's just a bit of practice. You'll be fine. Anyone that leaves in rage because of it just needs to chill a bit.

There's still a laundry lists of bugs, incompatibilities with browsers old and new, and stuff that's simply gone. (latest item: average time per move. Used to be included in stats, no-where to be seen now).

And the question is not how many people have joined or left, but how many more would have joined or wouldn't have left if the change hadn't been made. Under the old format the site was growing handsomely as well. Yet now I can imagine that anyone who doesn't use Erik's favorite browser will give a pass on it.

Last but not least: if you want to build a solid customerbase, be careful with your existing longtime customers. There are enough of them who are still galled by the continuing presence of bugs and oversights.

Kay...Irishman gets shipwrecked on an island ....wait ,Scotish guy gets shipwrecked on an island , after months he wakes up one morning to find a full equipped life boat on the beach ,state of the art. What does he do?